Objectives: We present the results of our experience with balloon catheter sinusotomy (BCS) in patients who had chronic rhinosinusitis. Methods: The medical records of 30 patients who were treated for chronic sinusitis with the BCS technique between April 2007 and February 2008 were reviewed retrospectively. Preoperative and postoperative assessments were performed by endoscopic endonasal examination and Lund-Mackay radiologic staging of paranasal sinus computed tomography scans. The symptom scoring was performed with the Sino-Nasal Outcome Test–20 (SNOT-20). The postoperative follow-up period was at least 12 months. Results: We performed BCS in 151 sinuses, excluding 2 maxillary and 2 frontal sinuses. No major complication attributable to BCS was observed. After operation, suctioning and crust removal was not needed in the area operated on in BCS patients. Revision surgery was needed in 2 patients after 6 months. From before to after operation, the SNOT-20 values and Lund-Mackay scores decreased significantly. Conclusions: We conclude that BCS helps to dilate the sinus ostia properly and effectively in the management of chronic rhinosinusitis. It can also be performed in the ethmoidal air cell area.

Purpose: To compare clinical and audiological outcomes of the type 1 tympanoplasties where conchal cartilage (island graft) and temporalis fascia were used as the graft material. Procedures: In this retrospective study, the results of type 1 tympanoplasty operations (n = 50) in which cartilage and temporalis fascia were used for graft material were compared. Results: Pre- and postoperative otoscopic findings of both groups were similar (p > 0.05). Preoperatively, the pure tone averages (PTAs) and hearing thresholds of the fascia and cartilage groups were similar (p > 0.05). However, postoperatively, the PTAs and air-bone gap closure were better with temporalis fascia compared to cartilage grafting (p < 0.05). On frequency-specific comparisons, the pure tone thresholds at the frequencies of 0.5, 1 and 2 kHz recovered better with temporalis fascia compared to cartilage (p < 0.05). Although the pure tone recovery was better at 4 kHz with temporalis fascia, the difference between the groups were not significantly different (p > 0.05). Conclusion and Message: In conclusion, in contrast to many reports in the literature, temporalis fascia grafting seems better in our study than grafting with conchal cartilage.

Background: The aim of this study was to compare the outcomes of functional endoscopic sinus surgery (FESS) and simple polypectomy plus balloon catheter dilatation (BCD) in nasal polyposis. Methods: Ten patients (six male and four female subjects) with nasal polyposis who underwent surgical treatment were included in this research. BCD was performed on one side of each patient's paranasal sinuses (after nasal polypectomy by microdebrider) while standard FESS was performed on the other side. Preoperatively, all patients were treated with oral methylprednisolone, 1 mg/kg per day, for 5 days, which was reduced and stopped on the 14th day. Pre-and postoperative endoscopic and radiological findings were compared. Endonasal endoscopic examination results were classified according to MacKay classification. Paranasal sinus computed tomography findings were evaluated according to Lund-MacKay classification. Results: Pre- and postmedical treatment results of the patients were not significantly different according to MacKay classification. There was no significant difference between the results of FESS and BCD during 12-month follow-up period according to Lund-MacKay and MacKay classifications. There was significant improvement in the results obtained 1 and 12 months after FESS and BCD, respectively. The improvement was also radiologically evident. Conclusion: At 1 year postsurgery, polypectomy plus BCD is as effective as FESS. Longer-term studies are necessary to validate this technique.

Objectives: This study aimed to investigate the relationship between the neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR) and the platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR) and Bell’s palsy in addition to the usability of these markers to predict prognosis.Methods: In this prospective study, the patient group included 24 patients that were diagnosed with Bell’s palsy and 29 healthy volunteers that had similar characteristics to them regarding age and gender with patient group as the control group. The temporal gadolinium-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (TGd-MRI) was performed to all patients. The complete blood count was also obtained from both the patient and the control groups, and these two groups were compared for NLR and PLR, mean platelet volume (MPV), platelet distribution width (PDW), and platelet count. The relationship between these markers and Bell’s paralysis prognosis was also investigated. Results: The patient and control groups were similar in age and gender (p > 0.05). NLR was significantly higher in the patient group compared with the control group (p = 0.016). There was no correlation between the NLR value and the prognosis of Bell’s Palsy. The PDW and white blood cell count (WBC) were significantly higher in the patient group than the control group (p = 0.023 and p = 0.012, respectively). A comparison of the recovered and unrecovered patients revealed that the PDW value was significantly higher and the platelet count was lower in the recovered patients than the unrecovered patients (p = 0.009 and p = 0.003 respectively). The MPV value was higher in the recovered patients, though not statistically significant (p = 0.063). Based on the cut-off values determined in the receiver operator characteristic (ROC) curve analysis, a comparison of the recovered and unrecovered patients reveals that the likelihood of not healing was significantly higher in those that had normal PDW values (p = 0.036).

Tr-ent The Turkish Journal of Ear Nose and Throat